Maternity services at York and Scarborough rated 'good' following significant improvements

03 September 2026

Maternity services at York and Scarborough hospitals have been rated ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following inspections which found significant improvements in the care provided to women and babies. 

The CQC inspected maternity services at York Hospital on 14 and 15 April 2026 and at Scarborough Hospital on 16 and 17 April 2026 to assess progress since its previous inspections. 

Both maternity services are now rated good overall, with all five areas assessed by the CQC – safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led – rated as good. The Trust’s maternity teams support around 4,000 births each year across the two hospitals. 

Inspectors praised the kindness and dedication of staff and found strong evidence of teamwork, learning and collaboration. Women consistently told inspectors that staff were kind, supportive and listened to their concerns. 

The reports also highlight improvements in incident management, safer and more consistent triage, fire safety arrangements, maternity equipment, baby tagging and staffing arrangements, alongside stronger governance and oversight. 

Inspectors found women received personalised care and that staff respected their personal, cultural, social and religious needs. They also highlighted specialist support including the Amethyst Team, which provides individualised care for women experiencing mental health needs during pregnancy and up to eight weeks after giving birth. 

The CQC also praised the Trust’s Personalised Maternity Care Plan, developed with the Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership to ensure women and families are at the heart of their care. 

While recognising the significant progress made, inspectors identified areas where further improvement is needed, including mandatory training, staff appraisals, the maternity environment and complaints processes. The Trust will continue to address these areas as part of its ongoing improvement work, while ensuring the progress already made is sustained. 

Our Director of Midwifery, Sascha Wells-Munro OBE, said: “This is a proud moment for our maternity services and, most importantly, for the women and families we care for across York and Scarborough, and the multi-professional teams who work together every day. 

“Our colleagues have been on a significant journey. They have listened, learned and worked incredibly hard to make the changes that were needed, while continuing to care for and support thousands of women, babies and families. 

"I have seen first-hand the determination, compassion and commitment they have shown throughout. That’s why it means so much to see inspectors recognise not only the improvements we have made, but the culture within our services – the teamwork, the learning and, above all, the kindness women experience from our colleagues.

“Behind this rating are hundreds of people who have supported one another and remained absolutely focused on providing safe, high-quality and compassionate care. I want to say a heartfelt thank you to every member of our maternity teams. They should feel enormously proud of what they have achieved.

“I also want to thank our Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership, who have worked alongside us to co-design these changes and make sure the voices of women and families are at the heart of the improvements we have made.

“And, importantly, thank you to every woman and family who has taken the time to share their experiences with us. Listening to those experiences, learning from them and acting on what we hear is fundamental to how we continue to improve our services.

“We know our work does not stop here. I want to assure all women and families that we will keep listening to you and learning from you. We will build on this progress, sustain the changes we have worked so hard for and keep looking at how we can improve.”

The Trust's Chief Nurse, Joe Hague, added: “Moving from inadequate to good across both of our maternity services is a significant achievement and reflects the considerable work that has taken place across the Trust.

“Since joining the Trust, I have seen first-hand the commitment of our maternity colleagues and the strength of the leadership and teamwork behind these improvements. The findings from the CQC, alongside the positive experiences shared by women using our services, are a real testament to their hard work and determination.

“This rating provides important independent recognition of the progress we have made in the quality and safety of care. It’s an important milestone, but our responsibility now is to sustain these improvements and continue getting better. We will take confidence from this report while remaining focused on providing consistently safe, high-quality and compassionate maternity care for every woman, baby and family who relies on us.”

Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership (MNVP) Lead for York and Scarborough, Helen McConnell, said: “The progress made across maternity services since the last CQC inspection has been significant, and we are proud that the voices and experiences of women, birthing people and families have played such an important part in that journey.

“As an MNVP, we hear directly from people using maternity and neonatal services, and the change in the feedback we are now receiving reflects the improvements made by Sascha and the team. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has shared their experiences, and to colleagues who have listened and acted on what they have heard.

“This is an important milestone, but the work continues. We will keep working with women, families and the Trust to make sure their voices remain at the heart of how services improve and develop.”

Inspectors also highlighted positive practice including improved triage, strong safeguarding practice, regular refresher training for community midwives supporting home births, and specialist midwives undertaking targeted community visits to help women understand risks and access safe care.

The report will be published on the Trust's page on the CQC's website in the coming days.